Linux Shadow Password HOWTO

9. Frequently Asked Questions.

Q: I used to control which tty's root could log into using the file /etc/securettys, but it doesn't seem to work anymore, what's going on?

A: The file /etc/securettys does absolutely nothing now that the Shadow Suite is installed. The tty's that root can use are now located in the login configuration file /etc/login.defs. The entry in this file may point to another file.

Q: I installed the Shadow Suite, but now I can't login, what did I miss?

A: You probably installed the Shadow programs, but didn't run pwconv or you forgot to copy /etc/npasswd to /etc/passwd and /etc/nshadow to /etc/shadow. Also, you may need to copy login.defs to /etc.

Q: In the section on xlock, it said to change the group ownership of the /etc/shadow file to shadow. I don't have a shadow group, what do I do?

A: You can add one. Simply edit the /etc/group file, and insert a line for the shadow group. You need to ensure that the group number is not used by another group, and you need to insert it before the nogroup entry. Or you can simply suid xlock to root.

Q: Is there a mailing list for the Linux Shadow Password Suite?

A: Yes, but it's for the development and beta testing of the next Shadow Suite for Linux. You can get added to the list by mailing to: shadow-list-request at neptune.cin.net with a subject of: subscribe. The list is actually for discussions of the Linux shadow-YYMMSS series of releases. You should join if you want to get involved in further development or if you install the Suite on your system and want to get information on newer releases.

Q: I installed the Shadow Suite, but when I use the userdel command, I get "userdel: cannot open shadow group file", what did I do wrong?

A: You compiled the Shadow Suite with the SHADOWGRP option enabled, but you don't have an /etc/gshadow file. You need to either edit the config.h file and recompile, or create an /etc/group file. See the section on shadow groups.

Q: I installed the Shadow Suite but now I'm getting encoded passwords back in my /etc/passwd file, what's wrong?

A: You either enabled the AUTOSHADOW option in the Shadow config.h file, or your libc was compiled with the SAHDOW_COMPAT option. You need to determine which is the problem, and recompile.